Clinical Research
Does energy healing work? For what diseases, conditions, and symptoms does it work best?Â
Clinical research helps determine how well a healing therapies works in real-world settings and also examines its efficacy under controlled conditions. Many subtle energy and biofield-based therapies are already offered in hospitals and clinics, and people often seek them to support chronic mental and physical health concerns.
Reiki and Mindfulness for Chronic Knee Pain
In a rigorous placebo controlled trial of energy healing, Reiki and mindfulness were both more effective than a waitlist control for knee osteoarthritis pain, with Reiki reducing pain by 32 percent. Reiki showed improvement at the one month follow up that was comparable to mindfulness, an evidence based complementary approach to pain management.
Clinical Research Landscape/Evidence Map
Explore the more than 350 studies on subtle energy and biofield healing published to date, and see how this growing evidence base points toward the strongest path forward to deepen the science, elevate research quality, and support a new generation of rigorous and influential work in this emerging field.
Healing Touch & Guided Imagery for PTSD
Combining Healing Touch with guided imagery for active duty soldiers with PTSD led to significant reductions in clinical symptoms, lowered cynicism and improved quality of life, demonstrating a meaningful impact on the effects of trauma, and illustrating how multimodal approaches may strengthen the benefits of energy healing.
Systematic Review on Non-Touch Biofield Healing
This review examines randomized controlled trials of biofield therapies delivered without physical contact. The results are encouraging, but the small pilot studies highlight the need for larger and more rigorous trials to determine true efficacy.
Biofield Therapy for Breast Cancer Survivors
This RCT in breast cancer survivors found that a 4-week biofield therapy program significantly improved fatigue and diurnal cortisol variability for many participants. Interestingly the patients’ expectation about whether they received real healing did not predict who improved, suggesting results may not simply reflect placebo.
Spiritual Energy Healing Intervention for Knee Pain
The study assessed a non contact version of the spiritual healing tradition known as “laying on of hands” for older women with knee osteoarthritis and found that when delivered with a spiritual component, patients experienced significantly improved functional capacity, reduced anxiety, and better long term outcomes compared to both the nonspiritual version and a no intervention control.
Explore the Science
Browse by Category
Join the Community
For exclusive access to the latest research, resources and stories transforming how we experience healing.
In the spirit of the Greek word “merraki” which means “doing something purely for the love of it”, the nonprofit Merraki Media created Phenomena to thoughtfully explore energy healing -- using rigorous scientific inquiry -- in an endeavor to help reduce suffering and promote greater wellbeing
Â
© 2026 Phenomena Healing